The strong breeze deposited Felicia and Christopher a bit West of the intended landing point. They chalked it up to bad luck, but didn’t let it concern them…much.
As their chutes caught in the branches of two nearby trees, they quickly extracted the clip knives from their chest holsters and cut themselves free. As soon as they hit the ground, their automatic rifles (including Felicia’s custom sniper-job) were drawn and ready.
The pair dropped into cautious stances, with Christopher covering the North and East, and Felicia, the South and West. They held a collective breath, listening for telltale signs of werebeast patrols.
“Anything?” Christopher asked quickly.
“Quiet,” Felicia snapped. Her attention rested firmly on the thick row of brush and scrub at ten o’clock.
Moments passed in silence, until their communicators buzzed to life. <<Barry here. All clear on our end. Teams, report.>>
Another crackle, two seconds later. <<Zack here. Annie and I are clear. No sign of enemy activity.>>
Christopher looked over at the motionless Felicia, sighed, and tapped his transceiver. “Christopher here. Felicia and I are down safely, but we can’t call it clear just yet.”
<<Any definite signs? Tracks, movement, anything?>>
“Nothing I can see yet, Barry. Felicia thinks she’s spotted something at her 10.”
“Screw that. I know I’ve spotted something,” she spoke into her microphone helmet. “You all keep moving, Barry. Whatever’s here, we’ll draw it away from you.”
<<Copy that. Be careful, team. Everyone else, continue operation.<<
Felicia re-braced her rifle, leading with the steady aim developed from years of training and discipline, both personally and professionally.
“What’ve you got, Felicia?” Christopher spoke into his headset, to minimize the chance of the wrong ears hearing.
She did not respond before the faint rustling of leaves in a tree above her caught her attention. Her barrel was staring it down in less than a second. Nothing.
Christopher continued to cover the perimeter around her, closing the gap between them to prevent separation. “Felicia! I saw something too!”
“What!? Where!?” she spoke back through gritted teeth.
He lost his response amidst the sudden ambush leap of three…